


Introduction to Flirtation

by ElasticElla



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, Drinking, M/M, Minor Alec Lightwood/Jace Lightwood - Freeform, One-Sided Relationship, background & mentioned ships: jace/simon maureen/rebecca & clary/izzy/meliorn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-14
Updated: 2016-03-14
Packaged: 2018-05-26 17:06:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6248353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElasticElla/pseuds/ElasticElla
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alec knows it's not the best idea. If seducing his best friend was a good idea, he'd be going to Izzy for help, not Magnus.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Introduction to Flirtation

**Author's Note:**

> for [this](http://ladygawain.livejournal.com/83265.html?thread=930113#t930113) prompt at the ficathon
> 
> ([my tumblr ^.^](http://parkwest.tumblr.com/))

Alec knows it's not the best idea. If seducing his best friend was a good idea, he'd be going to Izzy for help. Sister or not, she has a girlfriend and a boyfriend, and no matter how fast she drives, she has _never_ gotten a speeding ticket. That said, Izzy will definitely advise him to just tell Jace how he feels- and yeah, _no_. He is so not risking his best friend over this. But some harmless flirting that will either be brushed off or might lead to them dating? Alec wanted that. The only problem being, he has no idea how to subtly flirt- and Jace is definitely off limits for advice.

Which is how, on a Saturday afternoon, Alec finds himself three floors above his dorm room, knocking on his RA's glittery golden door. Magnus is a pretty chill RA, as long as nobody got hurt he tended not to care much about the university's handbook. He threw huge parties to help the dorm unwind, and was known to occasionally smoke up with some residents. Most importantly, he practically had a harem that followed him around. 

“I just woke up this better be good,” is muttered before the golden door swings open, and Alec is already freaking out before he sees his half naked RA. He should have come later, Magnus sometimes left his door open, and _god_ \- no wonder most of the campus is after him. 

Alec forces his eyes up, cheeks burning. “Sorry, I can come back later?” 

Magnus waves a dismissive hand, leaning against his doorway, “I'm already up. You're second floor right?” 

He nods, “I um, was wondering- I mean I was hoping- no I have a proposition for you? I-” 

Magnus smiles, gently interrupting, “Darling, you're adorable, but I don't fuck freshmen- strict policy, sorry.” 

Alec tries not to look horrified, “No! That's not- I'm a soph- not the point. I need help seducing my best friend.” 

Magnus's eyebrows pop up, and he opens the door wider, “I'm going to make some coffee, want some? And tell me how you got such terrible housing, I thought I only had frosh. And your name.”

“Alec Lightwood-”

“Ah,” Magnus spins around, reappraising him, “you're Izzy's older brother.” 

“Uh yeah- how do you know my sister?” 

“Through the boyfriend Meliorn, and the girlfriend too actually- Clary was in a class I TA'd last semester.” 

“Huh.”

“Housing woes?” Magnus prompts, reaching up to grab two mugs. 

Alec swallows and looks away, “I wanted to be here- it's the closest dorm to the cafeteria, pre-med buildings, and the archery fields.” 

“Busy, busy,” Magnus says, handing him a mug, and gesturing to the cream and sugar on the counter. “and you want to add dating your best friend to all that?” 

“Yeah,” Alec answers, adding a dash of cream. He can't help but smile at the idea of dating Jace. It'd be pretty much the same but with kissing, and he'd maybe complain less about going to Jace's rugby games. 

“Well, I don't particularly want to start my paper for Edna. So! You may have the next… two hours.” 

“Thanks, but will learning how to flirt really take that long?”

Magnus's mouth falls open, “Oh darling. The two hours are to make you look presentable.” 

“He's known me since elementary school, I don't think-”

“Nonsense! The first step is trying to make your friend see you in a new light. A new light,” Magnus pauses, eyes dragging over him, “that will have a touch more of color and will be tighter fitting.” 

“ _Tighter_?” Alec looks down at his clothes that aren't exactly loose, but Magnus just nods. 

“Absolutely.” 

.

They're taking the bus downtown, and Magnus turns to him, hands clasped together. 

“How do you usually flirt?” 

Alec blinks, but Magnus looks earnest, and he tries to avoid the eyes of other passengers. “Irregularly?” 

Magnus chuckles, “Cute.”

Alec picks at a new hole in his jeans, “I just say I'm interested, I don't um, do anything else?” 

“Ah, the virtues of having a pretty face,” Magnus declares as the bus reaches the mall. “So that ordinarily works for you?” 

Alec blushes, standing. “I um, have never tried. But that's- that's how I would. Flirt.” 

A “huh” floats over his shoulder, and Alec follows him off the bus. Two hours turn into three through a flurry of clothing, and while Alec's opinion is blatantly disregarded, Magnus at least isn't picking out anything nearly as eccentric as what he wears. (Alec doesn't understand how anyone can look good in silver and purple leopard print jeans, but Magnus manages just fine.)

In the end Alec has five Magnus-approved outfits, and three of them he'd be willing to wear around campus. The other two are _only_ for party or dorm use, though Magnus tries to convince him that his teachers wouldn't mind nearly painted on skinny jeans or the white tank top that's a sneeze away from being translucent. His mother will probably be surprised at the credit card bill next month; but one, it's not like they couldn't afford it, and two, Izzy regularly spent double what he just did on shoes alone. 

Alec puts on his new clothes when he gets back to his dorm, going with the smallest change first. So he trades his usual black shirt for a light gray v-neck, and charcoal jeans for a tighter pair of dark blue jeans. The boy in the mirror looks drastically different enough that Alec hesitates, thinks of changing back, but then Jace is knocking on his door, yelling about wanting to get to the pizza before all the best toppings are gone. 

“Alright,” Alec says, swiping his student id and wallet. “Let's go before your precious bacon pizza is gone.” 

Jace looks him over for a sec, eyebrows coming together. 

“What?” Alec asks, locking the door behind him and fighting not to fiddle with his shirt. 

“You look different,” Jace starts, and a bubble of hope rises in Alec's chest. “Did you get a haircut?” 

Alec rolls his eyes, “No.” 

.

Monday morning, Alec says fuck it and goes with the red shirt. It's brighter than anything else he owned, but Magnus was very insistent that he get _this_ shirt, so Alec figures it's the best one. Bio-chem and genetics take up his morning, and other than occasionally catching his reflection in windows as he walks to class, it's like any other day. Well, that and the nervous fluttering in his stomach whenever he thinks about meeting Jace for lunch. Today, today Jace would notice and Alec would either move on or, or he'd ask Jace out for real. 

Quarter of one, ten minutes past when Jace and Alec ordinarily went to lunch on Mondays- the one regular day without anyone else- a text comes in saying _sry running late. classm8 was wrong_. Alec heads to the cafeteria alone, wondering why Jace would stay after class to argue about graphic novels. Writing it off as another liberal arts thing, Alec waits in the ridiculously long line for chicken tenders and picks up one of the free papers, half to read and half to keep other people in line from talking to him. A third of the way through a terrible op-ed piece on why riding the bus changed some entitled kid's life, and yes Alec _could_ feel the irony, Jace joins him in line. 

“Dude- you would _not_ believe what this kid said about Batman while practically sucking Captain America's dick-”

Alec refrains from rolling his eyes, folding up the newspaper and shoving it in his bag. 

“-and it was like he actually wanted to fight me, like what the fuck. I could so destroy his ass.”

“Uh huh,” Alec says as they inch closer to the front of the line, “don't beat up your classmate.” 

“I'm not going to- wait did you change-”

And before Jace can finish whatever his thought is, Izzy appears arms linked with Clary and Meliorn. 

“It is you!” she says excitedly loud, and Alec wants to melt into the floor. “Bro you would not _believe_ the bet I just won-”

Alec groans as Jace snickers. “I definitely don't want to know.” 

“Anyways,” Izzy continues with a slightly less salacious grin, “I'm so glad you've come to accept color in your wardrobe.” 

“You look very nice Alec,” Clary says, and god, he's sure that's the same exact voice she used when Max got dressed up. 

Meliorn's eyes are dancing, but thankfully he doesn't offer his thoughts on Alec's new clothes, he just says, “We will be late soon.” 

Izzy and Clary's eyes dart up to the clock, and Izzy swears. “Dammit, alright, later bro- hope they're impressed!” 

And the three leave, thankfully most curious eyes following their exit. 

Jace is looking confused though, as he piles chicken tenders on his plate. “Who are you impressing?” 

Alec drops his gaze, “Uh no one- it's not, it's not a thing.” 

Jace picks a table by the soda fountain, and thankfully lets the subject drop.

Alec is marginally more relaxed, dipping what's sure to be a perfect bite of chicken into honey mustard when Maureen plops down across from him. 

“Hey, I have your calc practice test and I spotted you so I figured this would be faster than waiting to meet-”

Jace comes back then with what's sure to be a gross mix of too many sodas, and an all too wide grin.

“Sorry,” Alec immediately says to her. “Maureen this is Jace, Jace this is my _tutor_ Maureen.” 

Jace's grin doesn't quit though, and he picks up his tray. “No worries- I just spotted someone, later man.” 

And Jace leaves with a fucking _wink_. 

Alec hates everything. 

“So uh, he doesn't know you're gay?” Maureen asks, making Alec blink rapidly. 

“Wha- how do you even know that?” 

Maureen snorts and ignores the very valid question. “Alright, so you had some trouble with defining limits of non-linear functions in these two problems…” 

The impromptu tutoring session ends up lasting nearly an hour, but by the end of it Alec actually understands what Maureen's talking about. He certainly can't deny that calculus is much more bearable with an endless supply of iced tea and chicken tenders. 

Most importantly, after he leaves the cafeteria and is crossing the quad, he spots Magnus. Or more specifically, he spots Magnus leading an informal yoga class, and he finds himself drawn closer without thought. 

Magnus is doing downward dog now- the only pose Alec knows for reasons related to Izzy he'd rather not think about ever again. He's wearing dark red sweat pants, and his ass is looking ridiculously amazing and perfectly curved. Alec doesn't even realize he's staring like a complete creeper until Magnus stands up and turns to him, face lit up. 

“Alexander! Have you come for today's stress relief yoga class?” Magnus asks. 

Too many eyes are suddenly on him to think of a decent lie for watching if he _hadn't_ been intending to join in, and it's not like he had Monday afternoon classes anyways. 

“Uh yeah, sorry I'm late I got um, caught up with a test.” 

“No worries, you can still join us for breathing exercises,” Magnus says with a smile. “Everyone drop down into lotus.”

Alec shrugs off his backpack and sits in the back, crossing his legs to match everyone else. 

“Close your eyes,” Magnus says, “and breathe in deep, hold it, one, two, three, and release.” 

He repeats it a few times, and Alec is more curious than relaxed, and he peeks up at Magnus. His hands dance through the air as he counts, and Alec gets lost in the repetitive movement, unconsciously matching his breath to them. His hands are certain and wearing blue nail polish and beautiful, indisputably so. He wonders if there's a non-weird way to ask Clary to draw Magnus's hands, or all of Magnus, that would be good too. 

Alec's eyes flick up for a second, and Magnus is looking right back at him, a small smirk on his lips. Alec immediately shuts his eyes, but then Magnus is saying, “Wonderful. Open your eyes, how is everyone feeling?” 

There's a general positive consensus, and Alec slowly gathers his stuff as everyone else disperses. 

“So!” Magnus cheerfully greets him. “How did the new clothes work?” 

Alec shrugs, “Nothing changed.”

“Ah, well time for more blatant steps.” 

“Like what?” Alec asks.

“How shameless are you?” Magnus counters.

“Excuse me?” 

“Is it too much to ask you to deep throat a popsicle near him?” 

Alec blushes bright red, choking on nothing, “I-I'm not-”

“Kidding darling, lighten up.” Magnus says with a smile, “I'm having a party this Friday. Bring him, see what happens.” 

“Okay, yeah that uh, that actually sounds like a good idea.” 

Magnus harrumphs, muttering, “Of course it is.” Louder, before Alec can offer an awkward apology, Magnus asks, “Have you already eaten?” 

“Yeah, I do the one o'clock rush.” 

Magnus gives an exaggerated shiver, “That's simply awful Alexander. One day you'll have to join me for a later lunch when the cafeteria's deserted and Raphael finally puts out the cheesecake.” 

Alec goes for the easiest thing to respond to first, “The cafeteria has cheesecake?” 

“The things you miss with the masses,” Magnus says with a glittery wink. “I'm this way then, I'll see you around.” 

.

The rest of the week is pretty busy for Alec, and he doesn't have a chance to really work on possible seduction of best friend or manage a late lunch with Magnus. Jace keeps bringing up Maureen, much to Izzy's amusement- and Clary's too when it turns out she's an old friend of hers. And so is some kid in Jace's class, and it's a tiny miserable world after all. Alec doesn't mind the conversation going over his head, it means he doesn't have to feel awkward about refilling his drink. 

After Tuesday Alec goes back to his typical wardrobe. Jace doesn't seem to have noticed either way, and he'd much rather be in his usual clothes. Magnus laments this Wednesday morning, but they're both headed in opposite directions so he doesn't get to say more than, ' _Oh dear Alexander, what ever happened to your new clothes?_ ' He does text him a flurry of emojis five minutes later that Alec isn't quite able to decipher, and he really doesn't want to ask Izzy for help with them. (Ordinarily, Alec finds out, Magnus overuses emojis but includes words too for context. It feels like breaking a secret code, though Alec always texts back in complete sentences.)

Maureen ends up joining their lunch table with her friend in glasses in the middle of the week. At the very least Jace stops dropping blatant hints when he learns Maureen is apparently dating glasses' sister because this tiny group wasn't connected enough. Alec's just waiting to find out glasses is Meliorn's long lost cousin or ex-boyfriend. 

All together, after his last class on Friday, Alec's never been more ready to party. Or well, vaguely willing to at least. 

He puts on the ridiculously tight jeans, which takes far more effort than he'll ever admit. The light blue tank top seems benign after that, and before he can second guess himself he heads up to the fifth floor, knocking on Magnus's door. 

“Party doesn't start for another hour! You better be willing to help set up!” Magnus's voice yells from within, and a moment later, the door swings open. 

“Ah Alexander, what a pleasant surprise. Come in.” 

“Thanks,” Alec says, following him in. The room is drastically different from the last time he was here, black lights and blank paper lining the walls. All of the furniture is gone except for a single table in the corner that has his sound system. 

“Isn't it marvelous?” Magnus asks with a smile. “There will be fluorescent spray paints by the walls, and all the drinks will be in the kitchen.”

“Wow, this- it's going to be great.” 

“It should be. What were you here for?” Magnus asks, and Alec catches himself looking at the golden shimmer of his lip gloss. 

“Oh, I um was wondering if you had any ideas? I mean, he's coming to the party,” Alec says. “It's just...” 

“You don't want him to know how you feel if he doesn't feel the same.” 

“Yeah,” Alec says, “precisely.” 

“You said he was trying to set you up with a girl this week? Tell him you're interested in a guy, see how he reacts,” Magnus says, and Alec blinks, forcing himself to stop watching Magnus's expressive hands. 

“Thanks, I'll do that. Do you um, need any help setting up?” 

“No,” Magnus says with a small laugh. “That was a lie to dissuade any early party crashers. Is this what you're wearing?” 

Alec gulps, “Um yes? Is there something wrong with-”

“You look positively divine,” Magnus interrupts, and Alec fights back a blush. 

“Thanks. For everything I mean, you've been really helpful with all this,” Alec says. “You didn't have to, and I really appreciate it.” 

Magnus smiles, “You're welcome Alexander.”

Alec feels like blushing again, which doesn't even make sense, and he needs to get his head back on straight. “Alright, I should probably, um, do the thing.” 

Magnus raises an eyebrow, “Pre-game?” 

“Yes.” 

“Of course,” Magnus says, “I have a few last minute drink run to go on anyways.” 

Alec nods, and leaves before he can trip over anymore words. 

.

Alec doesn't end up pre-gaming that much. His tolerance is fairly low, and it's never been something he wanted to increase. So it's more him nursing the same beer while Jace gets a forty for himself. Meliorn is playing in some hippie riverside concert, and thankfully this one he isn't being dragged to. Clary and Izzy are there of course, and Alec has his fingers crossed that Maureen and her friend are there too. He's not sure if they're all close enough to party together or not, but he's pretty sure he is supposed to know the answer to that, so he doesn't ask. And by pure luck, Jace's rugby teammates aren't partying tonight so he won't be dragged to endless frat houses. While Alec can find partying tolerable sometimes, he abhors jumping from party to party, seemingly always moving on the moment he approaches comfort. 

All in all, tonight is looking like a near perfect evening. 

There are a few moments when Alec imagines saying, _by the way I like guys not girls_ , but he doesn't. It'd be weird to do that when they're alone, and the party will provide plenty of distractions if it goes poorly. Not that he thinks it'll go _that_ bad. Not unless Jace realizes Alec likes him more than he's supposed to and- and Alec can't think like that, can't panic now.

They decide to head up when they can hear the base pounding from three floors down, and once again Magnus's dorm is nearly unrecognizable. Besides being over-crowded, the blacklights are on and people have already spray-painted names and doodles all over the walls. 

“Clary's gonna be so pissed she missed this,” Jace says. 

“Yeah,” Alec says, following Jace as the crowd just parts for him somehow. 

“Drinks?” Jace asks, eyes combing the room. 

“Sure,” Alec says, and he can definitely have one more, maybe two if they're weak without regretting anything come morning. 

They get to the kitchen with minimal shoving, and one dancer falls into Alec, but she's light and easily sent back towards the living room. Jace makes them both rum and cokes while Alec tries to think of a non-awkward way to say he likes guys. He _could_ say some other dude's hot, but that could backfire too easily and-

Jace hands him a drink, and moves forward to say in his ear, “Don't look now but Magnus Bane is checking you out.” 

Alec snorts at himself, “Nah, we're friends? I think we're friends.” 

Jace pulls back, “Okay. What have you done with my best friend? First you wanted to party on a Friday, the holiest of study days-”

“Oh, come _on._ ” 

“-and now you have other friends I don't know about?” 

Alec rubs the back of his neck, “It's not a thing.”

“Last time your RA threw a party you holed yourself up in the library and complained about him ruining your work environment. On a Saturday night.” 

“He's helping me with something okay?” 

Jace looks offended, and Alec wants to slap himself. God that was the worst thing he could have said to Jace because now-

“Helping you with what?” Jace asks. “What could he know that I don't?” 

Alec sighs and grasps at the first vaguely true excuse that might hold and is even what he's been wanting to say. “Flirting with guys.” 

“I know how to flirt with guys!” Jace half-yells, and Alec blushes as most of the room turns to look at them. 

There's an awkward beat, and Alec is beginning to think he should have brought this up a long time ago. “You um, don't mind right?” 

Jace's brows come together, “What? You liking dudes? That'd be pretty hypocritical of me, wouldn't it?” 

Alec's mouth goes completely dry, and he barely manages an, “Oh.” 

“Simon? The guy I've been telling you about, the one in my class? He's been having lunch with us?” 

Jace's past comments click in a new light, and Alec can't believe he missed it. “I thought...”

Jace laughs, stretching up to throw an arm around his shoulder, “Dude you're like my brother, I would _never_ replace you alright?”

“Right,” Alec chokes out. 

“I can't believe you've been so weird over Simon man.”

“Yeah,” Alec says, softer. “me neither.” 

.

Magnus finds Alec deep in his fourth cup, and Alec still can't believe how unobservant he'd been. _Jace_ was supposed to be the one too self-absorbed to notice stuff like this, not him. And he thought Jace's news would hurt more. He thought he'd be devastated, or at the very least heart-broken, but… he just feels kind of numb. Though maybe that's just the alcohol. Alec doesn't usually like dark soda, but coke and rum may have just become his new favorite combination. 

“-ander. Darling, are you alright?” 

Alec nods, before turning very seriously to Magnus. “Are you?” 

“Mhmm, though I think I'll be taking that from you,” he says, and he's already plucked the solo cup from Alec's loose grasp before he processes the words. 

Magnus takes a sip of it, turning something hot in Alec's stomach, and he says, “Not bad. Next time, I'll make you something better.” 

Alec finds himself smiling, “That'd be nice.” 

There's an empty beat, only filled by the dull roar of the rest of the party, and Alec's glad no one else seems to want to hang out in the hallway. 

“So, did you tell him?” Magnus asks, and Alec snorts. 

“Good news, he's bi. Bad news, apparently he's dating or fucking or whatever with glasses.” 

“I'm sorry to hear that.” 

Alec looks at him, and he's in a drunken extra focus, everything besides Magnus fading away. “You're smiling,” Alec accuses. 

Magnus's lips twitch, and it looks like he tries to frown before giving up. “I suppose I haven't really been rooting for him.”

Alec's eyes widen, with a soft breath and an, “Oh.” 

“I was rooting for myself of course, helpful matchmaker turns dashing-”

And Alec ducks his head to kiss Magnus, dimly registering that he's wearing something melon flavored. His lips are soft, really, _really_ soft and Alec could kiss him forever.

Magnus pulls away, hands on Alec's shoulders. “Tempting. We can talk in the morning if your feelings haven't changed.” 

Alec frowns, “I'm not- I _want_ to- I wasn't sad about Jace. Because of you I think.” 

Magnus smiles, squeezing his shoulders gently. “Good. We're still talking in the morning.” 

“Okay.”

Alec might slump onto Magnus's shoulder then, drunk and happy and shameless enough not to move. Magnus chuckles, and wraps an arm around Alec. He looks up with a grin, likes seeing Magnus from this new angle. 

“You're really pretty you know, like _really_ pretty.” 

Magnus grins down at him, eyes sparkling, “Oh yeah?” 

“Mhmm, like an angel.” 

“That's sweet of you,” Magnus says. 

Alec frowns, “Not like those naked baby angels. Like the sexy warrior ones, with swords.” 

Magnus chuckles, “You'll have to remember that for the morning.”

He pouts, butting his head into Magnus's chest. “Of course I'll remember, it involves you.” 

“Mhmm.”

“You're really comfy,” Alec mutters into his chest. “I could stay here forever.” 

“On that note, I'm going to insist you lay down somewhere as I don't think I'll be able to carry you unconscious.” 

Alec struggles to get up, “No, it's okay I live really, really close.” 

Magnus shakes a hand at him, “Nonsense there's no way you're getting down the stairs easily, and I'd rather you didn't vomit all over them.” 

Alec supposes that's a really good point given how queasy getting up made him. 

“I have a spare bed you can stay in,” Magnus offers. 

Alec's eyebrows come together, “How? And I thought the party was still going on?” 

“Hear the quiet?” Magnus asks, and now that he points it out, it _is_ a lot quieter than earlier. “And the spare mattress was an administrative mistake that Chairman Meow usually utilizes. You aren't allergic to cats are you?” 

“Um no,” Alec says, following Magnus slowly. “Your cat's a dictator?” 

Magnus laughs, “No. Have you ever noticed if you name a cat after something, they strive to be its opposite? The nastiest cat I ever knew was named Honey.” 

“Oh.” 

“Here you are,” Magnus says, “bathroom's on the left right there, sorry I know this room is rather small.” 

“No, it's great, thank you,” Alec says, pulling off his socks and shoes. 

“Right,” Magnus says as Alec strips his shirt off. “I'm going to go now, sleep well.” 

Alec blinks up, “Okay, thanks again.” 

Magnus leaves with a hand flutter Alec interprets as _no problem_ , and Alec flops down on the cot, nestling under all the blankets he can grab. He passes out then, too intoxicated to care about the tiny twin bed. 

.

Alec wakes up disoriented, in a room that isn't his and a cat sitting on his chest, staring down at him. 

“Um hi,” Alec says softly to the cat, wincing at the taste in his mouth. Petting the cat, he notices a bottle of water and aspirin, taking both and instantly feeling better. The cat jumps off his chest when he starts moving too much, and Alec finally gets up and dressed. He has a small headache but it's manageable, what's more worrying are the memories that come tumbling back and _oh god_ , did he really call Magnus an angel? 

The Jace and Simon thing makes even more sense in the light of day, and he wonders if he was actively ignoring the possibility before. It doesn't actually matter, he just feels a little like a dick. (God, Izzy would be so proud of him right now- acknowledging his faults _and_ waking up in someone else's bed!) 

Alec gets redressed, feeling a little grimy, but at least no drinks were spilled on him last night. Pushing the door open, he hears distant singing and smells bacon, and Alec follows his nose to the kitchen. 

Magnus is just wearing gold lounge pants that say _magical_ on the butt in pink lettering, and is singing Spice Girls while he flips pancakes. If stripper chefs were a thing, Alec thinks this is exactly what they'd look like: gorgeous beyond belief and flipping pancakes high enough that they shouldn't land back in the pan so perfectly. His make up is sleep mused, but still striking and Alec really wants to kiss him. 

Alec might very well still be dreaming. This seems to be a good explanation, and he stares for what could otherwise be considered a rude amount of time before it hits him that he usually can't _smell_ in his dreams. 

“Um, morning Magnus,” Alec says, stepping fully into the kitchen.

“Alexander! I hope you slept well?”

“I did- thanks again, I really appreciate you letting me crash here,” Alec says.

“Care to join me for breakfast?” Magnus asks, and Alec _can_ keep his eyes face level. 

“I'd like that,” Alec says, taking a seat at the counter. 

“Chairman Meow didn't bother you then?” Magnus asks, pouring them each a glass of orange juice.

Alec smiles suddenly, and maybe he's just feeling self-centered, but it seems like Magnus might actually be a little nervous. 

“No, he was happy to use me as a human pillow. Speaking of,” Alec says, looking down at the pancakes, “sorry about um, being such a mess last night.” 

“You have nothing to apologize for.” Magnus declares.

And with that, Magnus turns the stove off, splitting all the pancakes and bacon onto two plates and pouring syrup all over both. He comes around the counter, handing Alec a plate and Alec counts it as a success that he doesn't drop it or start rambling about how beautiful Magnus is. (Because seriously, _how_?)

“Oh god, I love you,” Alec says after the most delicious bite of pancake with far more syrup than he usually allowed himself. 

Magnus laughs, and Alec blushes, because dammit that was _not_ what he meant to say. 

“I mean, I love these pancakes. I like you. A lot. I like-like you.” 

“Alexander,” he says, and Alec looks up, an amused Magnus meeting his eyes. “I just made you breakfast after letting you sleep on my cat's bed. I _like-like_ you too.” 

Alec swallows, but makes himself ask, “In a maybe exclusively dating kind of way?” 

Magnus drops a syrup sticky kiss on his lips, “Absolutely.” 

And Alec is _never_ complaining about Magnus throwing parties again. 

(Jace is thrilled to hear that he was right about Magnus checking him out, and Izzy's just glad he's happy. And he is, very happy indeed.)


End file.
